Procedure for notice to the public of a proposed amendment to the Delaware Constitution.

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(a) For purposes of this section:

(1) “Newspaper of general circulation” means a newspaper that meets all of the following:

a. Is published at least on a weekly basis.

b. Is distributed throughout a county.

c. Is published in the language most commonly spoken in the area in which it circulates.

(2) “Newspaper of general circulation” does not include any of the following:

a. A newspaper intended primarily for members of a particular professional or occupational group.

b. A newspaper whose primary function is to carry legal notices.

(3) “Proposed amendment” means the full text of the legislation proposing an amendment to the Delaware Constitution.

(b) The notice required for a proposed amendment under §  1 of Article XVI of the Delaware Constitution must occur as follows:

(1) The proposed amendment must be published not more than 120 days before the next general election and not less than 90 days before the next general election in at least 1 newspaper of general circulation in each county.

(2) The proposed amendment must be posted for at least the 90 days before the next general election prominently on the Department of Election's and General Assembly's websites.

(c) The individual responsible for ensuring dissemination of the proposed amendment under subsection (b) of this section is as follows:

(1) The Secretary of the Senate, for an amendment proposed by a Senate bill.

(2) The Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives, for an amendment proposed by a House bill.

(d) The Secretary of the Senate, Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives, State Election Commissioner, and Director of the Division of Research shall review and approve the notice to be disseminated under subsection (b) of this section.

(e) (1) The individual responsible for dissemination under subsection (c) of this section shall provide immediate notice of doing so to all of the following:

a. The Governor.

b. The members of the General Assembly.

c. The Director and Legislative Librarian of the Division of Research of Legislative Council.

d. The State Archivist and Records Administrator.

(2) The notice provided under paragraph (e)(1) of this section must include all of the following:

a. A list of the newspapers in which the publication of the proposed amendment required under paragraph (b)(1) of this section occurred and the date of publication in those newspapers.

b. The place within the websites in which the posting required under paragraph (b)(2) of this section is to be found and the date of the posting.


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